The Bedford Boys

One American Town's Ultimate D-day Sacrifice

By: Alex Kershaw

Narrated by: William Dufris

June 6, 1944: Nineteen boys from Bedford, Virginia—population just 3,000 in 1944—died in the first bloody minutes of D-Day

They were part of Company A of the 116th Regiment of the 29th Division, and the first wave of American soldiers to hit the beaches in Normandy. Later in the campaign, three more boys from this small Virginia town died of gunshot wounds. Twenty-two sons of Bedford lost—it is a story one cannot easily forget and one that the families of Bedford will never forget.

The Bedford Boys is the true and intimate story of these men and the friends and families they left behind. Based on extensive interviews with survivors and relatives, as well as diaries and letters, Kershaw's book focuses on several remarkable individuals and families to tell one of the most poignant stories of World War II—the story of one small American town that went to war and died on Omaha Beach.

©2020 Alex Kershaw (P)2024 Hachette Books

A Powerful Story

I really enjoyed this book. It's a sad story, but a part of WWII history that puts sacrifice in context.

Worth Reading

Having read countless books about WWII, The Bedford Boys provides an excellent understanding of the history of d-day, while following the lives of the boys of Bedford, Virginia, as they march toward d-day. Kershaw captured the suffering of the young men who fought and survived, as well as the pain of those families left to wonder about their boys left at Omaha.
Never should we forget d-day. Kershaw brings it to life in a manner which is carefully crafted to help us feel the pain with facts, rather than portraying extreme graphic detail which is imagined.
Kershaw brings understanding to those who suffered from PTSD, those with survivor guilt, and to those grieving families of Bedford.
This book is well worth the read, and suited well for an audio book. The narrator has a pleasant voice which does not detract from the story.